It was a festive pre- celebration in Las Pinas on Friday as residents displayed their creative juices and made the most striking and impressive lanterns for the 11th Parol Festival.

Already an annual event, the Parol Festival is a competition of giant parols made by Las Pineros. Participating parols are sized 8 ft to 10 ft with designs and styles that vary from flowers, doubles stars, arabia and pating.

The festival was a brainchild of Sen. Cynthia A. Villar when she was still Las Piñas congresswoman in a bid to boost the city's parol-making industry. At the time, she helped organize the

"Samahang Magpaparol ng Las Pinas" and then set up the Las Pinas Parol Center which has since served as the training area for lantern makers.

'What better way to help my constituents than to provide them with the venue not only to showcase their talents but to also encourage residents, especially promising entrepreneurs, to venture into this highly lucrative industry,' Villar said.

Villar added: 'My family and I look forward to this festival every year. We anticipate this event with excitement, all agog what kind of beautiful lanterns our parol makers have prepared for the event.'

Villar, along with husband former Senate President Manny Villar and Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, led the festivities which was held at the Villar SIPAG offices, where the competing lanterns from 17 parol makers have been on display since December 1 when they were submitted. Lighting of the lanterns and judging was done on December 6.

The criteria for judging for the 11th Parol
Festival are Ingenuity & Resourcefulness-30%; Creativity-25%; Audience
Impact-30%; and Technical Skills-15%.

Aside from their designs, lanterns will also be judged on how creatively parol makers included recycled materials such as plastic, shampoo and soap covers, straw, pet bottles, CDs, cartons, cans, and shells like tahong and tulya, and indigenous materials like coconut husk, dried leaves, feathers, shells etc. in their finished products.

'We must always be highly conscious on how we can help protect and preserve Mother Nature. Using indigenous and recycled materials for our lanterns brings attention to this noble and important goal,' Villar pointed out.

Parol maker Bryan Flores took home the first prize pot of P20,000.

The second prize of P15,000 was given to Alicia Bencio, while Emeterio Cabasal Jr. took home the third prize award of P10,000.

Each participating parol-maker was given a subsidy of P2,000 each. At the same time, a street dance competition, with the theme "Paskong Las Piñeros: Sama-samang pag-indak tungo sa pag-unlad", was also held among elementary school students was also held during the festival.

Participating groups had a maximum of 50 elementary students all currently enrolled in Las Piñas City. Their costumes had parols/lanterns and recycled and indigenous materials as their main component. Each participating group was given a subsidy of P25,000 for their costumes, props and other equipment.

The criteria for judging for the street dance competition are Interpretation and Concept, 40%; Choreography (Mastery, Execution and Synchronization, 30%; and Costume and Props, 30%.